


The Absurdity of Unfinished Business

by Imogen_LeFay



Category: Glee
Genre: Afterlife, Ghosts, I promise, M/M, Moving On, Past Character Death, Sebastian Sees Dead People, The Sixth Sense - Freeform, Unfinished Business, happy end though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:41:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,338
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27285826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Imogen_LeFay/pseuds/Imogen_LeFay
Summary: “I see dead people.” - Words that cursed his life since he could speak.There are millions of ghosts haunting earth, trying to solve their unfinished business and move on – and nobody is better than Sebastian Smythe at ignoring them. It all changes when the ghost of Blaine Anderson comes into his life. Then again, what are rules without exception?
Relationships: Blaine Anderson/Sebastian Smythe
Comments: 16
Kudos: 54





	The Absurdity of Unfinished Business

**Author's Note:**

> Halloween time! So obviously, I post the creepy fic before Halloween, and on Halloween itself a non-spooky fic, but it has ghosts, and it's what you get when I have some time to think during a night shift.  
> So, as the premise has ghosts, I probably won't spoil you too much when I tell you there's a past character death. But if you know anything about my writing, I'm a sucker for happy endings. So, I hope you'll give this a chance even if you like me run screaming from the mere shadow of character death.
> 
> Also, spoilers for The Sixth Sense, I guess.

When Dr. Crowe had heard about the case for the first time, he had been hesitant. A young boy, barely ten, hearing voices and seeing things. Hallucinations – probably more serious than just the standard imaginary friends. But the parents were rich, the family influential, and the child apart from his delusions apparently exceptionally bright.

Really, it was an honor for any child psychologist to be selected to deal with this particular case. And he would have seen it that way, if it didn’t remind him too much of a similar patient. Vincent, he remembered, that poor disturbed kid he hadn’t been able to help, who grew up into a young man filled with fear and rage and despair, leading him to try to punish Crowe for his failure, and take his life in the same night. As always when he remembered that case, Crowe felt the twinge in his stomach, that gunshot wound that should have killed him.

But this was a different boy, and maybe – just maybe – he could be saved. Maybe this would make up for the failure of his lifetime.

He pushed the thoughts aside as he approached the boy, wrapped into a jacket and a scarf as he sat on a bench, watching other kids having fun on a playground. His mother was close by, Crowe knew, keeping a closer eye on her son now that he shared his fears and apparitions with her, but still far away enough to give him some privacy.

“May I sit?” he asked.

The boy looked up at him, scanning from his eyes down his body, stopping at his stomach for a moment, before sighing and shrugging. There was even a bit of an eyeroll – too much cynicism for his age.

“Hello, Sebastian. My name is Malcolm Crowe,” he said.

“Cool,” the boy said, obviously not impressed.

“I’m a child psychologist,” Crowe said. “I’ve heard you’ve been having some trouble. Hallucinations. I’m hoping I might be able to help you.”

The boy snorted, shaking his head. “You can’t help me,” he said. His voice was clear of his mother’s French accent, and there was a confidence about him that surprised Crowe.

“Why do you think that?” Crowe asked.

“I don’t hallucinate,” Sebastian said.

“But you do see things,” Crowe suggested.

Sebastian sighed, and finally turned his full attention to the man sitting beside him. “Not things,” he said. “I see dead people.”

Crowe frowned. “In your dreams?”

Sebastian shook his head. “No, walking around, going places, sitting on benches… They’re everywhere. They only see what they want to see. They don’t even know they’re dead. Except some of them do, and they try to make me do things. Solve their problems.” He sighed, shaking his head. “It’s annoying. They’re really needy. But I can’t make them go away. Can you help make them leave me alone?”

Crowe hesitated, frowning at the boy in front of him. Even when talking about what were basically ghosts, he didn’t seem frightened. Of course, figments of imagination weren’t always accompanied by horror…

“I guess not,” Sebastian said with a shrug. “Like the rest of them.”

“The rest of them?” Crowe asked. “You mean… other psychologists?”

Sebastian rolled his eyes as if he was being particularly obtuse. “ _Ghosts_ ,” he said. “Like you.”

Suddenly, Crowe felt very cold. “What?”

Again, the boy looked down to his stomach, and this time Crowe followed his gaze. His shirt was red, and underneath, he could see the gunshot wound. It had been deep, bled a lot. Surviving that had been a miracle.

No…

An impossibility…

He looked up at the boy, who was now watching him with something akin to sympathy.

“You can’t save me,” he said, “like you couldn’t save whoever did this to you. But it’s okay. I’m not going to go crazy. I’ll just learn to ignore the ghosts.” He sighed, shaking his head. “Are we done with the session? I think I want to play with living people now.”

Crowe shook, as his mind came to terms with what he’d just realized. Everything he’d believed in for months was a lie… but had it been months? How had he even spent them? How had he even heard about Sebastian Smythe and his weird apparitions?

Did it matter?

There was something light in the knowledge. He closed his eyes, let himself drift. Something was pulling at him. Before he let go, he opened his eyes and caught one last glimpse at the boy. He looked back, too serious for a child, and rolled his eyes. But then, just before everything became bright, golden light, the boy waved. Just for a moment.

Finally, Crowe let go. It felt like peace.

* * *

Sebastian Smythe was not a hermit. He loved parties, really, and was pretty damn proud of how well he juggled his law studies at Columbia with not only a large friend group, steady partying but also regular hookups. Sure, he might have shifted from finding random people at clubs to a small circle of friends with benefits, but hey, when you got older quality over quantity really started to become a thing.

For him to stay home on a holiday, working through his books instead of accompanying his friends on their night out, was unusual. Even Hunter’s nagging hadn’t moved him this time, which was a damn shame because he knew what that mood spelled out for the rest of the night. But none of that stood a chance against that one fundamental truth of his life.

Halloween _sucked_.

Sure, normal people had their fun dressing up in skimpy or geeky costumes, only half of them actually spooky. But apart from that, it seemed to be the night where the gates to the afterlife were particularly firmly closed, and in turn all ghosts were more active, wandering the streets, looking for anything that might save them.

Too bad for them, Sebastian was not in business.

Sure, he might have tried his best to help the occasional ghost growing up, but in the end, he decided it was more trouble than it was worth. It had been years since he’d actually “saved” someone, and he still wasn’t sure if it was even such a good thing. He had no idea what happened to them when they went into the light. It looked peaceful enough, but well… he couldn’t know for sure, could he?

At least, somehow the message had spread. Just like ghosts seemed to be drawn to him for the fact that he could see them, somehow the fact that he wouldn’t help seemed to keep them away. Most days, he could just lead his life like a normal person.

Then again, this was Halloween. The rules were always different.

He could feel the presence before he could see or hear anything – just a change in the air, a charge, not unlike electricity. There was someone standing, or maybe more floating behind him, silent for now, but it was only a matter of time until they’d make themselves known.

Sebastian didn’t bother to look up from his reading. The sooner the ghost understood it wasn’t welcome, the better.

It took longer than expected, but eventually, there was a noise, like the clearing of a throat. It wasn’t really a sound, nothing his ears picked up. It was more inside his mind, like the memory of a sound.

“Excuse me? Are… are you Sebastian Smythe?”

He sighed, and finally turned around. In front of him, there was the apparition of a young man. Late teens to early twenties, he estimated, although really, with ghosts it was impossible to tell. He was handsome, that much was clear – dark hair in carefully styled waves, eyes sparkling golden even through the haze all ghosts seemed to carry around, and he was wearing what looked like some sort of school uniform – grey slacks, a navy blazer with a red crest over a white shirt, navy and red striped tie… really, the perfect school boy fantasy. If Sebastian had met him in the flesh…

Too bad, he thought. He hated it when something this pretty got wasted.

“And who would you be?” Sebastian asked.

“My name is Blaine Anderson. I was told you might be able to help me,” he said.

“By who?”

“A… ghost, I think?” Blaine said. His voice was uncertain, as if he wasn’t used to the thought yet. “This lady… she was a bit mean, but… she said you could help me.”

It had to be June, the old hag really couldn’t let things go, and didn’t she have a soft spot for the classic Hollywood type…

“I’m not really in the business of helping people,” Sebastian said. “Not that your whole schoolboy getup isn’t hot, but…”

The ghost looked down, and it almost looked like a blush was forming on his face. “I… honestly don’t know why I’m wearing this,” he said, “I just… woke up like this.”

Sebastian sighed, and turned around in his desk chair. “It’s a comfort thing,” he explained, “ghosts don’t really manifest in the state their body was in – and thank god for that, in some cases. You find a state where your mind felt comfortable. Safe. Then latches on to that.”

The ghost nodded. “That makes sense,” he said. “It’s my old school uniform, from Dalton. It’s the last place I felt really safe at.”

“Wait… is that in Ohio?” Sebastian asked, intrigued against his better judgment.

“Yes, Westerville. You’ve heard of it?” There was a glint in Blaine’s eyes, a spark of hope, and Sebastian found himself smiling.

“I was supposed to go there for a while,” Sebastian said, “but… things fell through. My dad got a different job and I ended up in Boston. It looked nice, though.”

“It is,” Blaine said.

Sebastian sighed, shaking his head. “Fine,” he said, “you’ve got my attention. What’s your deal?”

Blaine walked closer. Not technically walking, more like that floating thing ghosts usually did, before he moved down to sit on Sebastian’s bed.

“It happened a while ago,” he said. “I was visiting my parents in Ohio. I’m a…” He stopped, looking down before he continued. “I _was_ a student at Tisch. I flew back for my parents’ anniversary. My dad picked me up from the airport. We… talked. We… well, it wasn’t a nice conversation. And suddenly, another car was in our lane, coming at us, and then…” He stopped, shaking his head as if he couldn’t fathom continuing.

“You died in a car crash,” Sebastian said, feeling something unfamiliar in the pit of his stomach. Something he hadn’t felt in a long while. Pity, he realized. And what a waste it was. Such a pretty thing, extinguished so thoughtlessly… Maybe that was what he hated most about his “gift”.

“I’m still here, though,” Blaine said, “drifting… floating… it’s…” He shook his head. “I don’t know how to let go. I don’t know what’s keeping me here. I don’t want to be dead… But I can’t go on like this.” When he looked up at Sebastian’s eyes, he could see the glint of tears.

“Unfinished business,” Sebastian said. “It’s usually what keeps ghosts around.” He sighed, running a hand through his hair.

He never wanted to do any of this again. But it had been a while, and this boy… there was something about him, even if it was only the flimsy connection of a school he never went to. What harm would one last mission do? It was Halloween, after all. The rules were different.

“So, you need to figure out what’s keeping you here, and then solve it,” Sebastian said. “Shouldn’t be too hard, you don’t look like the type who has too many dark secrets.”

Blaine looked up, the hope clear in his eyes, and somehow, it made Sebastian feel like he was doing the right thing.

“You’ll help me?” he asked.

Sebastian could only hope the news of this wouldn’t spread around among ghosts. “For the record,” he said, “it’s just ‘cause you’re that pretty.”

* * *

“So, car accident, that sounds like fun. We should start there.”

It was exactly this bedside manner that made him so popular with all the other ghosts. With Blaine, it for some reason had a different effect. He snorted, surprising himself with laughter, before shaking his head.

They were sitting on Sebastian’s bed – well, Sebastian was, the ghost still did that semi-floating thing – and had started discussing possible leads on the unfinished business.

“Start with what?” Blaine asked.

“Well, you said your father drove you, right? So maybe it’s something about him. He probably feels guilty.” Sebastian noticed the dark expression spreading on Blaine’s face and stopped. “Did I say something wrong?” he asked. Not that he’d ever cared much about choosing his words correctly.

“I doubt he feels too guilty,” Blaine said.

Sebastian raised an eyebrow, a silent question.

Blaine sighed, shaking his head. “We never had the best relationship. My brother went to LA to become an actor… which… didn’t really work out. So, it fell to me to be the perfect son my father always wanted. But then I came out as gay, and… that didn’t fit into his plans. Things really cooled off after that. We were civil, though. Until he picked me up from the airport. He asked how I was doing, and I made the mistake of telling him about my life, which at the time included breaking up with my fiancé. I knew it was wrong to start that conversation, but I thought… he’s my Dad, you know? He should be able to listen to me.”

“Kind of the bare minimum,” Sebastian agreed, but he could already tell that the story wouldn’t end too well, even considering there was a fatal car crash somewhere in there. It wasn’t even the tone of his voice, or the frown on Blaine’s face. Somehow, his mood managed to tint the very air around them.

“He told me he couldn’t pretend any longer,” Blaine said, “that he tried to keep the peace for my mom’s sake, but that he’ll never get over the fact that I’m gay, and not the son he wanted to have. That I probably cost him the chance to have grandchildren. I guess adopting doesn’t count, and also me being gay is worse than my brother just not getting his life together, but what do I know… In the end, he told me he doesn’t even consider me his son.”

Sebastian sat back, only now noticing his jaw had dropped. His own family was… difficult, to say the least, but this? This was insane.

“What did you say?” he asked.

One side of Blaine’s lip quirked up in a smirk. “Dad, look out, that car…” There was a soft chuckle, and Sebastian found himself smile, too. Blaine, though, got more serious. “After that, I mostly remember pain, and darkness. When things started to kind of make sense again, I was in New York, at my ex’s place. But he couldn’t see or hear me, he was just crying. I couldn’t bear it, and then I drifted away.”

“Most people wake up in the place they lived last,” Sebastian said. “It’s like your appearance. Your soul’s drifting in a place it doesn’t belong, so it latches on to whatever feels familiar, and safe.”

“Then why not my parents’ house?” Blaine asked. “I grew up there, it was closer…”

“How much of a home was that after your dad just disowned you?”

“Oh.” Blaine looked towards his hands. “It kind of makes sense.” He did look upset now, although he’d been admirably controlled during the conversation so far.

Still, Sebastian thought he’d have to dig just a bit further.

“So, your father’s last words to you were that he doesn’t see you as his son. You don’t think he regrets that? That making amends over that might help you move on?”

Blaine shook his head. “That’s _his_ unfinished business,” he said. “It was shocking in the moment, but really, it didn’t come out of nowhere. I won’t let that take a hold on me. It’s not him.”

The determination of his resolve was so clear that Sebastian could taste it. And really, he was more than willing to deal with this than the previous topic. Unfortunately, every single thing he could home in on now might turn out to be a minefield.

Still, they were doing this for a reason, not for small talk.

“What about your ex? What’s the story there?”

Blaine groaned, burying his face in his hands. “Honestly, I think that’s probably it. When I broke up with him… I said some pretty bad things. It was really ugly.” He sighed, shaking his head. “I’m not sure I can explain it without going into the details, though.”

“Go ahead,” Sebastian said with a shrug. “I literally have nothing else to do right now.”

Blaine’s hand lifted, and there was a self-deprecating smile on his face. “But I’m warning you. It’s an awfully cliché story,” he said. “We were kind of high school sweethearts.”

“Gross,” Sebastian said. “But hey, my roommate’s a diabetic, if this gets too saccharine, I can steal some insulin from him. Hit me.”

Blaine stared at him, his mouth slightly open in shock, then he shook his head. “You’re not what I expected,” he said.

“It’s what I live to hear,” Sebastian replied swiftly. “Now spill. What’s the story?”

Blaine sank back into the bed and stared at the ceiling. “I met Kurt back in high school,” he said, a soft chuckle leaving his mouth. “He came to spy on our show choir. But honestly, I think he was just really lonely. We became friends, and eventually started dating. It was…” He sighed. “I thought it was magical. Like, fairy tale, soul mate, meant to be love. I transferred schools for him. Thought we could do this great romance, teaching tolerance, spreading love…” He shook his head. “I don’t know, I guess I was naïve. It wasn’t all magical, really. I just tried to ignore the bad parts of it. We broke up once in high school. He went to college and I still had to do senior year. I got lonely, I…” He closed his eyes, and Sebastian knew the next words before he even spoke them. “I cheated on him. He broke up with me. I spent months trying to get him to forgive me. He did, eventually. We got engaged, we moved in together in New York… and we kept fighting, so I had to move out. And then we tried again. I knew it wasn’t going well, but I thought if I just plan the perfect wedding, it will be fine. And then he dumped me, because we still couldn’t live together. It… kind of broke me. I even went back to Ohio for a while…”

“…and never came back?” Sebastian hummed. “I get how that would be hard to move on from.”

Blaine looked up at him in surprise. “No, that… that wasn’t this break-up. We got back together after that.”

Sebastian blinked. “Wait… how often did you break up?”

“Three times,” Blaine said. He groaned, burying his face in his hands. “That might be the worst. That I’ve literally become such a stupid cliché on-again-off-again thing… we became Ross and Rachel. Do you understand how awful that is?”

“I literally do,” Sebastian said.

“Well, after our second breakup, I went back home. I moved on, even found a new boyfriend. And one day he’s back in town, and he wants me back. And at first, I tell him no, but he wears me down eventually, and we get back together. We came back to New York, and can you guess what happened?”

“It was fine for a while and then it turns out that you still couldn’t live together?” Sebastian guessed.

Blaine nodded. “It was all the same. We were either fighting or freezing each other out, and… I was just so tired. And I felt so stupid. Like, how did I even fall for this again? But that’s what it was. I could feel us escalating, and I knew, any day he’d turn around and say he’s done with me. Again. And it would break me, and he’d walk away just fine, until a few months down the line he got bored or lonely again, and then he’d try to drag me back in. And It though… Not this time. Not again. So, I did the only logical thing.”

“You blew it up yourself,” Sebastian said.

There was something sad in Blaine’s smile, something bitter. “Blew it to pieces,” he said. “The next fight, I threw it all in his face. Every single moment where he was selfish, where he ignored me, or was jealous of me. Everything he ever blamed me for. Every cruel thing I could think of. And it’s not like I was perfect, and it was all his fault. I know I made mistakes, too, but at that moment, I was just so… angry, and hurt, that he could take me from a life and a relationship I was _content_ with, that he can just drag me back, and then it all breaks down anyway…” He stopped, looking to the ceiling. “I’ve never been a cruel person,” he said finally. “That’s not who I am… or was. I never wanted to be like that. But at that moment, it all just broke out. And he didn’t deserve it. Breaking up was the right thing to do, but… not like that.”

It was silent for a moment as Sebastian watched the ghost in front of him. The regret in his voice was obvious, but it wasn’t just that. It was like he could feel echoes of it himself, like a bittersweet taste on his tongue.

“What do you think?” Blaine asked, finally meeting his eye.

“I think that sounds like some very unfinished business.”

* * *

Just looking at the building – really, just the neighborhood – told Sebastian more than he’d cared for. Every aspect screamed Starving Artist (millennial editiontm), as if it had been created with the kind of people in mind that were convinced Rent was the height of creative earnestness.

He’d hooked up with more than one theater major, he knew what he was talking about.

“You seriously lived here?” he muttered as he walked up the stairs.

Blaine shrugged beside him. “I’d defend myself, but everything I could say would make it worse, actually.”

Finally, they were at the top floor, and Sebastian knocked at the door. After a moment, a young man his age opened. Sebastian wasn’t sure what he had expected… but it probably hadn’t been this. The guy looked like he stumbled out of some weird fashion show Sebastian couldn’t be bothered with, more dressed for a really gauche party than staying at home, with what looked like a satin vest paired with a too bright, too loudly patterned shirt. Clipped against his vest in jarring contrast, there was what looked like a silken, black bowtie. It had probably been fine originally- before someone had bedazzled it.

“Can I help you?” the guy asked, in a voice that truly completed the look.

It took all of Sebastian’s willpower not to turn to the ghost of Blaine floating beside him to give him a look full of judgement. Instead, he tried to tone down all mockery. It wasn’t appropriate, really. The guy _had_ just suffered a loss.

“You’re Kurt Hummel?” Sebastian asked instead of answering the question. When the guy nodded, he continued. “My name’s Sebastian Smythe. I was hoping to talk to you about Blaine?”

Kurt paled at the sound of that name, which given his complexion was almost impressive. “Did you… were you a friend of his?”

“We went to Dalton together,” Sebastian said, a cover story he hadn’t particularly thought about, but that came naturally. And really, it wasn’t too farfetched. That could have happened, after all.

At least he thought so until he caught a wave of panic from Blaine. Sebastian frowned, glancing to his side where the ghost was floating.

“Kurt went to Dalton,” Blaine said, his voice sounding like a hiss of steam, “he’ll _know_.”

But before Sebastian could come up with an explanation, Kurt nodded. “Yeah… right, of course. I’m sorry, of course I remember.”

A clear lie, but Sebastian wasn’t going to complain. Maybe Kurt just had a bad memory for faces.

“Or he just didn’t pay attention at all when he went there,” Blaine said. There was a hint of annoyance in there that the ghost was obviously trying to hide.

“I’m sorry, how exactly can I help you?”

“Yeah, okay, this isn’t exactly a doorstep conversation,” Sebastian said. “I know you guys broke up, and… well, we talked a bit about it. There are just a few things he would have wanted you to know.”

Kurt still made no move to let him in. Fine then, a doorstep conversation it would be.

“I don’t know what he told you, but he got a lot off his chest before he walked out of here. If he forgot a few details, I’m not sure I want to hear them. At least not through a third party.”

“He was sorry,” Sebastian said. He could feel it, not just from his own instinct, but also from the nervous energy he could sense from Blaine. There was no room for subtlety here. If he wanted to get his message across, he’d have to be fast, and he’d have to be blunt, unless he wanted the door shut in his face before he even got started. “About the things he said to you. He was very clear about that, the last time we talked. He said those things not because he really thought everything between you guys was awful. But he knew that you couldn’t sustain the relationship, and he was scared. He thought you’d drop him again, and he’d have to find a way to pick himself up. It wasn’t that he hated you. More like a ‘you can’t fire me, I quit’ situation.”

Kurt stared at him, and Sebastian thought for a moment he could see through the mask he was wearing like a shield. There was obvious pain underneath, and maybe just a bit of hope.

“He said those things to hurt you, because he thought it would make walking away easier,” Sebastian said. “He was scared, and trying to protect himself, but it got out of hand, and he regretted that. You didn’t deserve that.”

Kurt shook his head. “Even if I buy that… he still chose to walk away instead of fixing us. But then… why couldn’t he just break up? Why did he have to say all these things? Why be so…”

“Cruel?” Sebastian guessed. He didn’t have to think of the word, not with how obvious the guilt on Blaine’s face was, almost tinging the whole room into a dark red. “He didn’t give me the details, no. But I guess that was the point. He tried to cut you off completely. If he was so cruel you could never forgive it… then maybe you wouldn’t turn around and pull him back again, like you did before.”

Kurt looked at him with unshed tears in his eyes, and Sebastian really hoped he wouldn’t start crying. He felt uncomfortable enough. “When… when did he tell you all that?” Kurt asked.

Sebastian frowned. What kind of question was that? “Very close before the accident,” Sebastian said. “I mean, obviously. Or were you expecting some séance shit here? Drag his spirit from the grave?”

Sebastian knew it was a mistake before he even finished the sentence. Whatever vulnerability Kurt had been ready to show, it was gone, replaced by a cold anger.

“You don’t know anything about what happened between Blaine and me,” Kurt said, his voice positively acidic. “He was _everything_ to me, and he… he walked away, and now I might never know… if you think this is helpful… telling me this, like it’s some deathbed confession… I don’t want to hear it.”

“I’m just trying to clear things up,” Sebastian said, even though he knew it wouldn’t help. “I just wanted you to know that he didn’t hate you.”

“I think you should leave,” Kurt replied. “Goodbye.”

The slamming of the door cut through the silence. With a sigh, Sebastian shook his head before turning to his side. He wasn’t surprised to find Blaine still hovering there, a wistful expression on his face.

“That… probably went as well as I could have expected,” he said.

Sebastian stared at him. “You and I need to have a conversation about what the word well means,” he said. “But not here. Come on.”

* * *

It had taken an exceedingly long shower until Sebastian felt like he’d washed the smell of Bushwick off. When he returned to his bedroom, he found Blaine hovering near the window, looking out. He turned towards Sebastian when he heard him enter, and gave him a soft smile.

“You know… after thinking about it… I changed my mind. This actually went really well.”

Sebastian sank down onto his bed and stared at the ghost. “Again, we’ll have to discuss that word later. Also, if you’re telling me this was a good conversation with your ex, I’m starting to think you weren’t nearly strong enough when you told him off.”

Blaine laughed, shaking his head. “He’s not that awful. But sure, he can be… difficult.” He hesitated, before turning towards Sebastian. “What you said… about me trying to protect myself… I’ve been thinking about that. I actually think you may have been right there. I hadn’t thought of it that way, but it makes sense. That’s some pretty good intuition you have there.”

Sebastian shrugged. “I see things,” he said. “Especially hidden things. Just because I usually choose to look away doesn’t mean that I can’t see them.”

“Why is that?” Blaine asked, a note of curiosity in the air around him.

“Doesn’t matter,” Sebastian said, waving off the question. “And let’s not change the subject here. So, you think this was a good conversation. You feel at peace with how that went?”

“I do,” Blaine said. “It’s still going to be tough on him, but… it always would have been. There’s nothing I can do about it. I’m just glad you put the truth out there, and maybe some day down the line he can learn to accept it.”

“Okay,” Sebastian said, wondering for a moment how to address the ghost elephant in the room, before deciding that bluntness would get them there the fastest. “You’re still here.”

Blaine looked down. “I noticed,” he said. “So… apparently, that wasn’t my unfinished business. I’m sorry… I really thought that would be it.”

“It’s fine,” Sebastian said with a shrug. “Just means we’ll have to dig a little deeper. You say your dad is out… what about the rest of your family? You mentioned a brother. Is there a story?”

“Cooper,” Blaine said, and the smile on his face showed fondness. “He’s… honestly, he’s a bit ridiculous. And maybe I feel this way because he’s so much older, and he was always the cool older brother I wanted to emulate. But… he has this way of commanding attention. Like, he walks into a room, and he’s the center. It’s all about him. And everyone gets sucked into it. I thought it was so cool… until I realized, when he’s there, I kind of disappear.” He sighed, turning away again. “We had our issues, but we kind of reconnected while I was still in high school. We talked things through, and it got a bit better. We were talking more. But he made some really obscure career choices on which he didn’t really want to hear my opinion. Whereas I made some choices in my personal life that he wasn’t quite on board with.”

“Like your fiancé?”

“Mostly, yes.” Blaine looked back, again with that self-deprecating smile. “Wouldn’t have been the worst thing in the world if I’d listened to him. He did care, I know that now. But the whole us-against-the-world narrative was enticing. I didn’t even get around to tell him that I broke up with Kurt. When I…” He stopped, unable to say the words. “Before the accident, we hadn’t even talked in weeks. I don’t know… could this be it?”

“Maybe,” Sebastian said, although he wasn’t quite convinced. Then again, he didn’t have a better lead right now. “I guess I can go swing by your brother’s place.”

A shadow seemed to pass over Blaine’s face, and Sebastian could have sworn the room was tinted in a shade of blue.

“He lives in LA,” he said.

“Ah…” Sebastian frowned. “Now, that could be a problem.”

* * *

It turned out to not be that much of a problem in the end. All it took was a new email address, a flimsy fake social media profile, and claiming to be a fledgling journalist just dying to get an interview with THE Cooper Anderson to talk about what was new with his acting career, and voila – two days later he had a skype session scheduled with Blaine’s supposedly elusive brother.

He looked different from the commercials Blaine had begrudgingly shown him. That guy had looked like a clown. The man on the other side of the screen was showing a show face smile, but he seemed a lot more restrained than Sebastian would have expected.

“So,” Cooper said after their first greeting. “You’re interested in the next season of The Sinner that I’ve recently been confirmed as starring in?”

“Well summarized,” Sebastian said, forcing himself not to roll his eyes. “But actually, I’m not that interested in your show. What I really want to talk about is Blaine.”

Cooper’s whole demeanor changed, all smiles and warmth disappearing. “I’m sorry, that was not what we agreed on. I’ve made it very clear that I’m not willing to discuss this in any interview. What happened is an exceptional family tragedy, and very private. Maybe this interview wasn’t the best idea.”

“No, wait… it’s not an interview,” Sebastian said quickly. “I’m not really a reporter. I knew Blaine, back in high school.”

Cooper’s hand had already drifted forward as if he’d been about to end the call, but now he hesitated. “Which one?”

“Dalton,” Sebastian said.

Cooper leaned back, and Sebastian figured he’d given the right answer.

“We talked, before… well… before. And I felt I should share that with you. That’s why I set up this whole thing.”

“Cool,” Cooper said. “But why should I believe you? This could still be a trick to get some exclusive information about how I’m dealing with this.”

“You don’t have to give me any information,” Sebastian said. “Just listen.”

He waited for a moment, but finally Cooper nodded.

“I know that Blaine regretted that you fell out of touch again. He just wasn’t ready to hear the things you had to say. About his engagement. He didn’t want to hear it because he knew on some level that it was true. It was probably easier to just pretend it wasn’t. He did see it eventually, though. He even ended things with Kurt, and I know that he wanted to get back in touch with you. Really talk, and really listen.” He stopped, wondering how mushy this was going to get. But well, if there was a situation to not hold back, this was probably it. “Your brother loved you, even when you weren’t talking. He’d want you to know that.”

Cooper looked down, and when he lifted his head again, there was the gleam of unshed tears in his eyes.

“There were also things didn’t want to hear,” he said. “That I should have listened to. I wasn’t the best brother lately. Not in a long time, to be honest.” He hesitated, then he sighed. “I’ll be a father. I found out just two weeks before the accident. Just this girl I was seeing for a while… all very casual, nothing serious. And I bailed on her. Blaine called me, and I couldn’t answer, because I knew he’d never be okay with that.” He shook his head, the first tears running down his cheeks. “And now, I’m actually turning things around,” he said. “I’m stepping up… trying to do the right thing… I guess I want to be the kind of person Blaine could be proud of.”

“I don’t think you have to worry about that,” Sebastian said. Not if the warmth Blaine exuded was any indication.

“Thank you,” Cooper said. “For calling me. I… that was… that helped.”

“Don’t mention it,” Sebastian said.

“One more thing,” Cooper said. “You wouldn’t happen to be in Ohio anytime soon?”

“Why?” Sebastian asked, frowning.

“Just… if you get around to it… as a friend of Blaine’s… I think it would help a lot of you could call our Mom. I think it might make things easier for her.”

Sebastian’s first instinct was to decline. This was exactly why he usually didn’t help. It spiraled. You tried one thing, then there was something else, another person to talk to, another lead to follow up on. He could have said anything.

But the suggestion had startled Blaine. More importantly – Blaine was still here, not a hint of golden light around them. Cooper was not the unfinished business. Blaine still insisted his father wasn’t it, either. A grieving mother wasn’t the most obvious choice, but he was kind of running out of leads.

And then, of course, one other option. But that, too, was in Ohio.

“Actually… can you give me her number?”

* * *

Sebastian had hoped it wouldn’t have to come to this, but of course, he should have seen it coming. As he dialed the number and waited for an answer, he tried to calm down. This conversation would be harder for the woman on the other line than for him.

“Hello? This is Pam Anderson?”

Immediately, he was surprised at how cheerful she sounded – not what he’d expect from a woman that had recently buried a son – but it didn’t take long for him to see through it. It was a font, obviously, and maybe the only way she could deal with a tragedy no parent should ever have to deal with.

Well, maybe he could help with it.

“My name is Sebastian Smythe. I’m sorry to drop in on you like this… I’m a friend of Blaine’s. I heard about the accident… I just… I’m really sorry.”

There was a pause, and when Pam answered, he could hear just a hint of what she had to be hiding. “Thank you. Were you close?”

“We went to Dalton together,” Sebastian repeated the lie that didn’t feel like one. More like an alternate past, something that could have been, and he was surprised by how much he wished for it. Just to think where the both of them could have ended up… “And we talked a lot, the last few weeks. The thing is… I’ll be in Ohio next week. And I was wondering…”

“You want to visit him?” Pam asked. “That… that’s wonderful.”

“I was hoping to pay my respects, if that’s not too forward,” Sebastian said, trying not to cringe too much at the way she expressed it. “Visit the grave.”

There was a pause, as if she didn’t know how to react to this. “Well… yes,” she said finally, “of course you can. It’s on the Woodland Cemetery.”

He made a few notes as she gave him a closer description. All the time, he could feel Blaine hovering around him, even as he lounged back deeper into his desk chair.

“Thank you,” Sebastian said. “I know this must be a really hard time for you.”

She chuckled, with just a bit of bitterness shining through. “With the funeral, and basically living at the hospital… yes, sure, it’s been wonderful.”

Sebastian frowned. Blaine hadn’t gone into too much detail on how his father had fared, and Sebastian hadn’t actually thought about inquiring further. “He’s still at the hospital?” he asked.

Pam took in a shuddering breath, and only now did Sebastian realize how hard the woman must be fighting against the tears. “Still in a coma,” she said. “They’ve run so many tests… they say there’s no reason. He should be waking up. He’s just… not.”

“I’m so sorry,” Sebastian said. It wasn’t a complete lie. He did feel for her, to lose her son and have her husband in a coma. He just wasn’t sure how much grief he could bring up for a man who disowned his son just for the sin of being himself.

“Maybe it will be good for you to come over,” Pam said. “I’ll tell the nurses to expect you.” There was another voice on the other line, and he could hear her sigh. “I have to go. But thank you, and I’m looking forward to meeting you.”

After she ended the call, Sebastian put his phone down onto the desk. He could feel Blaine watching him, and finally turned around.

“You’re not convinced,” he said.

Blaine looked away. “I don’t think it’s my Dad,” he said. There was something to the way the air tinged around him.

Sebastian rolled his eyes. “You were probably an awful liar while still alive. But I can kind of see your aura now, so you might as well stop trying to hide things. Spill, what do you really think?”

Blaine turned, and he could see his eyes widen. Surprise, like he wasn’t used to people seeing through such obvious masks. Finally, he sighed. “I don’t want it to be him,” he said. “He said he was done with me, so why should I be chained to him? He cut me loose. Wouldn’t it be awful f he was the thing binding me here?”

“Weirdly ironic, and fate is a bitch. But I hear you, and I actually think you have a pretty good point. It’s his unfinished business, if at all, and not yours.”

“Then why do you think we should go to Ohio?” Blaine asked.

“We’re not going for your father. We’re going for your grave,” Sebastian explained. “It’s a bit of a long shot, but we don’t have a better lead at the moment. And it does help sometimes. Maybe that will… shock you into it, so to speak.”

“Have you seen that work?” Blaine asked.

Sebastian shrugged. “I mean, not personally… In case you hadn’t noticed, I haven’t made a habit of being too helpful to ghosts.”

“I did notice,” Blaine said. His voice was soft, and thoughtful. “You don’t really like ghosts, do you?”

“Got that right,” Sebastian said. Only after speaking the words did he realize just how far he put the foot into his mouth. “Present company excluded,” he added.

“But why?” Blaine asked, watching him carefully.

Sebastian shrugged, and now he was the one looking away. “You’re different,” he said. “Lighter.” He couldn’t even quite put his finger on why. But Blaine’s aura, the way the air around him reacted to his emotions, the way Sebastian could feel him… he’d met many ghosts in his life. But none had felt like this.

“No,” Blaine said, “I mean… why don’t you like ghosts? Why do you refuse to help?”

Sebastian looked at the ceiling. He’d thought about it for a long time before he’d made the decision, years ago. He’d never justified himself to anyone, had never seen the point. But Blaine seemed more curious than demanding, as if he wasn’t looking to cast blame but rather genuinely wanted to know what was going on.

“There are others like me,” Sebastian said eventually. “It’s a rare… talent, or gift, or maybe curse is the better word. But there are others. I’ve met some of them, and sometimes even ghosts tell me about them. Do you know where most of them are?”

He looked up just in time to see Blaine shake his head.

“Mental institutions,” Sebastian said. “And that’s the ones who didn’t commit suicide.”

Blaine’s eyes widened, his shock and surprise washing over Sebastian in an icy wave. “Are they… because of the ghosts? Do they think they’re hallucinations?”

Sebastian shook his head, and it was barely possible to fight down the cynical smirk rising on his face. “You’d think that, but no. It’s not that hard to pretend the ghosts aren’t there, and it doesn’t take long to realize that you’re not delusional. No, it’s not for psychosis.” He got more serious, thinking of some of the people he’d met. “Just… think of it. Really imagine what it’s like. All those ghosts, with their unfinished business. And… don’t take this the wrong way, but you’re kind of the best-case scenario. I’m not saying your death wasn’t tragic, because… well, it kind of is, you’re young, you’re _gorgeous_ , just about to start your life and then torn out of it by a freak accident. But some of those ghosts out there have really awful stories. People are sick, and the things they can do to each other… and then you hear it from someone who died, and all you can try to do is help them let go, and no matter how much you try to keep your distance, you will get into it. The darkness… the suffering… there’s violence… abuse… and even if you help them, what kind of help is that? Making them disappear…” He turned to Blaine, who was looking at him with his full attention, and yes, sympathy. “Imagine hearing so much pain and suffering… and after that ghost, there’s another. And then another. And after that, there are so many more, and it never stops. You can spend all your life trying to help ghosts, and you will never be done, because there will always be more of them. Like you’re Sisyphus and you roll that boulder up the hill again, and again, and again – until you break. It’s too much for anyone to handle. And I made a choice. I won’t be one of those mediums who breaks trying to save the world. I won’t tear myself apart for those I can’t meaningfully help anyway. I won’t be one of those locked away in a psychiatric ward, or worse, one of those who are driven so far, they can’t stand living anymore. I chose survival. Maybe that makes me selfish, or a bad person. Maybe I’m wasting an incredible gift. But I’m still here, I actually have a life. I’m sorry for those I could have helped. But I’ll make the same choice any day.”

He didn’t look at Blaine, didn’t want to see the judgement that was sure to be there. But he could feel the ghost approaching, his aura spreading around Sebastian with a warmth he’d never felt near another ghost.

“You’re not a bad person,” Blaine said, his voice full of conviction. “It just sounds… lonely.”

Sebastian’s eyes widened. Now that was a perspective he hadn’t thought of before. But there was some truth to it. This… gift that he had wasn’t exactly something he could freely share with people, not if he didn’t want to have very long conversations with a psychiatrist. He’d never had anyone close enough to trust them with the knowledge.

“I’m looking on the bright side,” he said, waving it off. “If the grave thing doesn’t work, I’ll have you hanging around.”

Blaine laughed, but there was something else in there, more than just bittersweet.

“What?” Sebastian asked, finally looking at the ghost.

“I’m glad I met you,” Blaine said, “that I got to know you. And I’ve even been thinking. We could have met so easily, under other circumstances. If you’d come to Dalton, maybe. But this…” he shook his head, and slowly, Sebastian started to feel it.

“It’s torture, Sebastian. I’m hurting every second I’m awake. And I can’t sleep. I’m cold all the time, freezing. When I try to touch something, I pass right through it. And it’s like my soul is shriveling. Everything is so blurry.” He shook his head, but when he looked towards Sebastian, there was something so tender that he wanted to look away. He forced himself to meet Blaine’s gaze. “You’re the only thing in the world I can see clearly,” the ghost said softly. “The only thing that doesn’t feel like freezing. And even you I can’t touch. If I have to keep existing, then yes, I’d do anything to stay close to you. But this existence… I can’t. And it’s not fair. There were millions of things I wanted to do in my life. I wanted to be a famous actor. I wanted to get married at some point. I would have been an uncle… And now, it’s all taken away. All I can hope for… is to disappear.”

There were tears running down his cheeks, and Sebastian wished he could reach out and wipe them away. He opened his arms, and Blaine came to hover in them. There was something he could feel, like the air was heavier where Blaine floated. But it wasn’t enough. It wasn’t real touch.

“You’re right,” Sebastian said softly. “It’s not fair.”

Blaine looked up, and he was close. Closer than he’d ever been, closer than Sebastian had let any ghost come. Just for a moment, it was so easy to imagine it. Dalton, fancy private school that it was, sitting over homework, skipping class, just being young and naïve and… alive.

“I wish I’d met you there. I swear, things would be different, then.”

* * *

When Sebastian arrived at the graveyard, there was a light mist in the air, and it was colder than it had any right to be. As he walked through the rows of graves, trying to follow the description Blaine’s mother had given him, he could see a handful of mourners. Some nodded towards him and he returned the gesture, but nobody tried talking to him.

Not even Blaine had made a sound since they’d started the trip. There was something different about him today – a bit heavier than usual, and there was something in the air that tasted like dread.

Visiting your own grave would probably do that to you.

And really, what did Blaine have to look forward to? It was a very long shot, and if it didn’t work, it might even be traumatizing. And even if it worked… who knew what would wait for him on the other side? How could he really know that it would be better than the torture he was going through now?

Finally, he could see it.

“We’re here,” Sebastian said.

The grave wasn’t old yet, adorned with a wooden cross instead of a tomb stone. Too fresh yet. There were flowers planted. It looked nice… neat… nothing about it matched Blaine, that warmth, that smile, that spark he somehow still managed to hold on to.

“Should we go?” Blaine asked. Uncertainty filled the air around him.

“It’s kind of your call,” Sebastian said.

He wondered whether this was really necessary. If there ever was a time to speak up, this might be his last chance. What was all this unfinished business thing anyway? What would looking at a grave do?

It was lonely.

But he remembered the pain that had radiated off Blaine when he talked about how hard things were. And Sebastian may be a selfish bastard, but he wasn’t that selfish.

“Are you ready?” he asked.

Blaine searched his face, and whatever he found seemed to give him the courage he needed.

“Let’s do this,” he said.

As Sebastian started walking towards the grave, Blaine floated closer, so close that he could tell himself their hands were touching, intertwining. And then, he stopped in front of the grave. After another moment of gathering himself, he looked up at the cross and the name written on it.

“Blaine? Do you… do you see that?” he asked, his voice barely above a gasp.

“It’s the grave,” Blaine said. “I don’t understand… It’s… there’s nothing.” The confusion wafted off him, and this time Sebastian found himself sharing it, because how could he not understand what this meant?

“It’s… my grave,” Blaine said softly. “Shouldn’t I feel something?”

Sebastian felt the realization roll through him like a tidal wave, rising higher and higher, as he turned towards the boy beside him.

Blurry, that’s what Blaine had said. Of course, he wouldn’t see it. But maybe, just maybe… He flexed his hand around where Blaine’s would be, and… it was not just his imagination. That wasn’t just air in his grasp. There was something there. Something real.

Blaine gasped. “You’re… I can feel your hand.”

“Look,” Sebastian said. “Really look, and see what’s there. Not just what you think is there.”

Blaine turned back to the cross, and Sebastian could feel the exact moment he understood.

Richard Anderson.

“This isn’t your grave, Blaine. It’s your father’s.”

“But… that means…”

It took all of Sebastian’s self-control to not burst out into laughter in the middle of a graveyard. “You’re not dead, Blaine. You’re in a coma. You must have gotten… lost, somehow, that’s why you don’t wake up.”

“I’m… alive?”

It ran through Sebastian, a wild stream, the hope that was exploding from Blaine.

“Come on,” Sebastian said. “I have to get you to the hospital.”

* * *

The nurses let him in with a smile, as if they’d been expecting him. Blaine beside him was basically fluttering, and Sebastian wasn’t sure whether he was equally nervous or just picking up on that. Finally, he walked into the too bright hospital room. And there in the bed was Blaine.

He looked a bit older than the ghost he was seeing, his hairs falling into loose curls, and just the hint of stubble on his face. He looked peaceful, as if he was simply sleeping.

“This is it then?” Blaine asked beside him.

Sebastian nodded. “Yeah, I… I think it is.” He looked to the apparition by his side and smiled.

Blaine looked at him full of emotion, as if they overwhelmed him, and flowed off him right into the air around him.

“Sebastian, I… I don’t know at to say,” he said. “Without you… I don’t know if I ever… How can I even _begin_ to thank you…”?

“Hey,” Sebastian said. “No speeches, okay? You’re not actually disappearing into the afterlife. You’ll have enough time to tell me whatever you want to.”

For a moment, there was surprise in Blaine’s face, and then he smiled. “I will, won’t I?” He turned to where his own body was lying in the bed, softly breathing, and closed his eyes.

A golden light washed through the room, and Sebastian felt… warm. Calm. Happy. Content. He tried to watch as long as he could, as the ghost of Blaine started to dissolve in golden dust, but it became too much, too bright. He had to close his eyes.

When he opened them again, the light had faded. Slowly, Sebastian walked towards the bed and sat down on the mattress. He took hold of Blaine’s hand, and waited. A moment later, Blaine’s eyes fluttered open. His eyes shone in a darker tone of the gold from before, and for a moment he looked around in confusion, until his gaze landed on Sebastian. When he smiled this time, the air didn’t move around him. And still, it hit Sebastian even more than before.

“Sebastian… thank you.”

Really, it wasn’t even a conscious decision to bow down, and press a kiss against Blaine’s lips. There was a gasp, maybe surprise, and then Blaine pulled him close, deepening the kiss.

“Hey,” he whispered.

“Welcome back,” Sebastian said, and the next moment they were kissing again.

So fine, he thought, as he finally allowed himself the touch. Maybe sometimes helping with unfinished business was worth it.

**Author's Note:**

> On tumblr as imogenlefay, feel free to say hi!


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